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August 13, 2000

Collins reluctant to play catch-up at linebacker

By VAUGHN McCLURE

Irish freshman Jerome Collins was stunned by the Notre Dame coaches' decision to switch him from wide receiver to linebacker (ISR Photo/JOE RAYMOND)

Jerome Collins thought it was a misprint. The Notre Dame freshman football player picked up one of those preseason preview magazines, Lindy's College Football Annual, this summer. Collins flipped to page 78, where he was listed as one of Notre Dame's incoming receivers from an 18-man recruiting class.

Nineteen pages later, a graphic detailing the freshmen of influence in the Midwest tabbed the Wheaton, Ill., product as a linebacker.

"I'm not sure where they got that from," Collins said a few days before reporting to Notre Dame fall football camp.

Turns out Lindy's was correct -- at least on page 97.

When freshman practice started on Aug. 7, Collins wasn't working out with receivers coach Urban Meyer. He was lined up with fellow classmates Mike Goolsby, Derek Curry and Jason Sapp for linebacker drills.

There simply isn't room on offense for Collins at the present time.

"We went back and forth with (Jerome's status) all summer long," Irish coach Bob Davie said after the first freshman practice. "He looks like he's going to be a tight end or a linebacker. We're looking for some backups at linebacker, and that's a critical thing for us this season.

"Jerome's a big receiver who can run, but he's 231 pounds," Davie added. "We've got some other receivers in this class. I think (the switch) gives him the best opportunity."

The position switch was the last in a series of events that already have brought Collins to the point of frustration.

And he hasn't even played a down yet.

Collins was looking forward to arriving on the campus ... until the folks in his hometown started getting on his nerves.

"People were asking me over and over if I was excited to go to Notre Dame," Collins said. "At first I was. Now ..."

Collins' closest friends even drove him crazy in the days before his departure. And they haven't let up.

"A lot those guys are asking me for Nebraska tickets, and it's starting to get annoying," Collins said. "And they want autographs. They just assume that because I'm going to Notre Dame, I'm going to end up in the NFL."

The position switch made matters more difficult. Collins actually was informed about a change this summer, when defensive coordinator Greg Mattison told Collins he'd be playing defensive end.

Collins was upset, but not crushed.

"I want to play wide receiver, but I'm not going to cry about it," Collins said. "The coaches think with my body type, and with the way I've already grown without taking any (vitamin) supplements, that I'm not going to be a wide receiver's body-type too much longer."

Collins was 215 pounds in high school, but used a personal trainer to bulk up during the offseason. He expects to put on another 20 pounds as the season progresses.

At his previous weight, Collins was a powerful, yet speedy target at Wheaton-Warrenville South High School. As a senior, he utilized his size and 4.5 speed (in the 40-yard dash) to catch 35 passes for 446 yards.

Collins stands 6-foot-4 -- the same height as highly touted frosh receiver Jovan Witherspoon from Fort Wayne, Ind. But size doesn't matter in this case.

Numbers seem to.

"All the wide receivers coming in are very much more decorated than I am," Collins said. "They're All-Americans, all-staters. I barely made all-state. Those guys may have the stats to say, 'Yeah, I'm better than you.' But, we'll see when we get out on the field."

Although Collins strongly believes he could make an impression as a receiver, he figures to adjust at linebacker. Defensive end may be a stretch, although Collins played that position toward the end of his prep career.

"I enjoyed my experience playing defense, but there's a big difference between playing defensive end in high school and playing defensive end in college," Collins said.

"There's so much more to know in college. At my size in high school, I was bigger than everyone else, so it was easy. Now, I'll have to gain 40 pounds, because these guys are H-U-G-E."

Another reason Collins is reserved about defense is the mental attitude. He doesn't have the "killer instinct" he believes defensive players should display.

Things could change.

"It all depends on what mood I'm in," Collins said. "If I'm in a bad mood, then I'll have it, for sure."

Maybe the Notre Dame coaches should send Collins home for a weekend, so people can get on his nerves again.